Hives driving me mad after Phentermine

Back in June this year (2010), I started taking Phentermine for weight loss. About a week into the treatment I had an intensely itchy hive wheal on my right hand and also itchy skin on the backs of my legs just under my buttocks. I thought it could have been a dust allergy because I know I'm allergic to dust, among many other things. I went off the Phentermine, and the wheal never went away, but it didn't bother me too much either. At this point I had not made a connection between Phentermine and hives. Then I went back on Phentermine again at the beginning of August, and hives came on vehemently, all over the body. Mine are small red dots primarily, though at the beginning, they were large. Typically now they vary in size, texture, etc. I went online to find out that, in fact, urticaria can be a serious side-effect of Phentermine. I went to my weight loss doctor, and he told me that my urticaria was stress-related. Even though it is a well-documented side-effect of Phentermine, my GP also stated that these hives were idiopathic and possibly stress-related, two diagnoses I can live without. I am not stressed out about anything except these hives, which are making me want to crawl out of my skin they are so annoying and distracting.

The GP put me on Zyrtec and Hydrocortisone cream, neither of which has worked to control the hives. I take an anti-histamine now (Hydroxyzine), and it seems to control them to a small degree. If I miss a pill, the itching gets out of control.

I've been on forums looking for help! I am desperate to avoid the treatments I have read about thusfar, especially Prednisone or any of the other immunosuppressive therapies they are doling out (the drugs they are prescribing seem to be worse than the hives).

My gut feeling is that taking that Phentermine really rocked my hormones and now I'm stuck with the hives going on 9 weeks. and I have doctors telling me that I need to control my stress even though it is well-documented that Phentermine is a cause of hives.

It doesn't really matter what gave me the hives at this point. I just want to know how to get rid of them immediately. I'm afraid to be stuck with them like some of the people on this forum! 10 years? 25 years? That scares me tremendously.

I've been off caffeine for two days and the hives are the same, intense, burning problem they were.

What can I do to be rid of this extrordinarily distracting irritation?? Prednisone has so many side-effects, including weight gain, which is why I went on Phentermine in the first place.

Can anyone please, please advise me?

[sheritahw]

The same thing happened to me. I say about a week and half after I started taking the pills I broke out in hives to. i took them 2 3 years ago and didn't have any problems. I go to a diet doctor and they compound the pills themselves at the doctor office. I have been off the pills for 3 days now and I"m still breaking out in hives. all over my chest,neck, and arms, and hands. They switched me to phendtrazimine, this pills are not as strong and I don't have as much energy. I lost 15 pounds in 19days with the phentrimine I will see how much I will lose with taking the other ones. I do excerise and cut out all fried foods and pastas. I I eat light potato chips only and healthy snacks no cookies,cakes, pies or anything in that nature. I don't take the pills everyday because I want to be able to lose the weight with just a little help. It's a mind thing and what foods you eat. I can't sleep with either pill so I really don't like taking them anyways. I can relate to the hives I hope mines will fade away.

[MHILL0107]

I have had hives for a year now. I am on an antihistamine regemin that seems to work very well. I take a Alevert and Ranitidine tablet in the morning when I get up. At 2 pm I take a Zyrtec and another Ranitidine tablet. At bed time I take a hydroxyzine and a singular tablet. I know it sounds like a lot but it's better than the itch. Hope this helps. God Bless

[bigtom86]

Ive been on the same stuff for about 5 days and my penis is shinking in size does anyone know if this goes back to normal in time of being on this medicine???